Advances in Mineral Metabolism (AIMM) is an annual meeting which combines presentations on basic and clinical bone biology in a format that provides extensive opportunity for open discussion. The AIMM meeting has been embraced by a broad spectrum of bone biologists and clinicians who have gathered annually for 23 consecutive years to participate in the high quality discussions of bone and mineral metabolism which embody the spirit of AIMM. One of the major goals of the AIMM meeting is to provide opportunities for young scientists to interact closely with more established researchers in a non-intimidating, intimate, and interactive venue that fosters creative scientific exchange. This is accomplished through a number of mechanisms: first, the AIMM/ASBMR John Haddad young investigator awards are presented at the AIMM meeting and awardees discuss their work within the planned scientific sessions;second, the program includes an open basic science session and an open clinical science session in which young investigators are encouraged to present recent findings;third, each session includes a lengthy question-answer period where participation of young investigators is prominent;fourth, the recently introduced meet-the-professor sessions provide unique opportunities for small-group interaction that particularly benefit scientists-in-training and young faculty. Finally, the format of the meeting where attendees are together most of the time and that includes a long midday break for informal discussions has been shown to be a successful way to increase interaction. The 2009 AIMM meeting will include sessions on osteoimmunology;the estrogen receptor as a signaling molecule in bone;non-classical actions of vitamin D;fracture healing;central control of bone remodeling;pediatric bone diseases;and new therapies for bone disease. The purpose of this proposal is to request funds to help defray the costs of the meeting and support registration and travel costs for young investigators and junior faculty (other than Haddad awardees) that attend the meeting. For the first time in its history, AIMM has signed a three-year contract for the rental of the Snowmass Conference Center, insuring that the meeting will be held at that location for the next three years. Therefore, this proposal requests funds for the 2009, 2010, and 2011 AIMM annual meetings. These funds will aid immensely in allowing AIMM to fulfill its function to stimulate further creativity in bone and cartilage research and to provide young investigators with a tribune to promote their talent.